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The FTSE 100 edged up 0.2 per cent, or 13.08 points, to 7288.72 as strong earnings updates from Standard Chartered (up 4 per cent) and Croda International (up 3.8 per cent) helped to offset losses in healthcare stocks.

Nanotechnology firm Oxford Instruments was by far the biggest winner in the FTSE Small Cap index after offloading its industrial analysis business for £80 million.

Oxford, which provides technology and systems for industry and research, sold the arm to software firm Hitachi, with the deal expected to complete next year.

STOCK WATCH: Mariana Resources

Mariana Resources advanced more than 60 per cent after announcing it will be bought for more than 84 per cent of its market value.

The South America-focused gold miner will be bought for almost £167 million by precious metal financier Sandstorm Gold, which already owns a 7.6 per cent stake.

Mariana shareholders will receive 28.8p in cash and 0.3 of a Sandstorm share for each Mariana share sold.

Shares rose 61.3 per cent, or 36.5p, hitting a five-year high of 96p.

Shares reached their highest level since July 2015, rising 11.8 per cent, or 100p, to 947.5p.

Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk was also among the day’s winners after returning to profit last year following heavy losses in 2015. Its 2016 profit stood at £26.7 million, compared to a loss of £231.6 million in 2015, although revenue fell to £420.9 million from £467 million. Investor confidence was also buoyed by the firm’s claim it can cut debt to £467 million from £475 million by the end of the year. Shares jumped 3.7 per cent, or 0.27p, to 7.57p.

Property developer U And I Group, on the other hand, had a nightmare as it became the latest firm to be hit by Brexit.

Shares fell as the company revealed that development and trading gains for the year until February 28 were down to £35 million from £51.1 the previous year.

Likewise, profit fell to £0.4 million from £25.8 million as the company struggled to generate interest in its portfolio of regeneration projects across London, Manchester and Dublin.

Chief executive Matthew Weiner said it was hit by a slowdown in activity following last year’s referendum, which raised questions around valuations in the housing market. After a large initial drop, U And I finished down 1.8 per cent, or 3.5p, at 189p.

Back-office software firm EG Solutions rose despite chief executive Elizabeth Gooch offloading a large chunk of shares for the third time in a month. Gooch sold 410,000 shares worth £250,000 as part of an agreement with shareholders to reduce her stake to improve the availability of the company’s cash and assets.

She still has more than 4 million shares, equal to a 17.8 per cent stake.

Earlier in April she sold just over 793,000 shares worth £484,000. At the end of March she sold a £49,800 stake as the firm announced a £2.1 million contract with a leading global bank. Shares rose 1.5 per cent, or 1p, to 66.5p.

‘Big data’ specialist Rosslyn Data Technologies saw £4.3 million wiped off its value after it announced that it will fund its £2.6 million acquisition of software firm Integritie with a share placing.

The tech firm plans to raise around £4.5 million by placing 100 million shares at 4.5p each. The cash raised will be used to develop Rosslyn’s existing product range.